


For You, I have to risk it all

by daydreamingstoryteller



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Kinda, M/M, Songfic, hopefully they're fixed now, idk what i'm doing though, really - Freeform, reposting cus the last one had issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-30
Updated: 2016-11-30
Packaged: 2018-09-03 08:31:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8705137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daydreamingstoryteller/pseuds/daydreamingstoryteller
Summary: Len knew that life hated him but he never thought it would hate him this much. While in a karaoke bar, trying to get drunk to keep his mind off of a certain speedster, he runs into than the very person he was trying to get over.In other words, a break up, crappy life decisions, a random bar and drinking leads to something entirely unexpected, but not necessarily unwanted. UPDATE: Reposting after editing because the last version was taken down due to copyright issues. Hopefully they're fixed now.





	

**Author's Note:**

> OK, so the previous version had issues so i tried fixing them and this happened. It would be good if you could listen to the song as you read the karaoke parts, if not they might not flow as well as they should. 
> 
> The song is 'Writing's on the Wall' by Sam Smith, from Spectre
> 
> Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended

SOMEWHERE IN CENTRAL CITY IN THE LATE HOURS OF THE NIGHT:

 

“Next up, we have ….Len Wynters and Barry Allen!”

Len’s heart skipped a beat. He cursed under his breath and looked at Lisa. She was casually sipping her martini, not giving the impression that anything was wrong. Len for his part kept glaring at her until she finally turned around to look at him with a sigh.

“What is it Lenny? You told me you wanted to get drunk and do stupid shit and that’s exactly what we’re here for. Now go up there and don’t embarrass me.”

“Lise…” Len hissed, but before he could continue, Lisa interrupted him.

“Don’t you give me any of that bullshit of yours Lenny! We’re here in a karaoke bar because YOU said you wanted to spend time with me, because YOU said you needed to get drunk and YOU didn’t say anything when I put in both our names into the box. So, don’t you dare say that this was all me just cause YOU fucked up. Now get your moping ass off this chair and on that stage. We are here to get drunk and sing crappy James Bond songs with random strangers so that’s what we’re going to do.”

“I’m not moping.” Len simply said, after a while, looking back down at his half empty drink.

He knew there was no way he was getting out of this one, not with his little sister being the stubborn train-wreck she is. Well, if he couldn’t get out of whatever painful situation that awaits him on that stage, the least he could do was to try and delay it. Especially since the whole reason why he’s here in the first place, trying to get shit faced drunk, is due to one very charming and very heroic scarlet speedster. They very same speedster that –

“Are you even listening to yourself Len? You haven’t made a single pun the entire time we’ve been here and more so than that, you’ve not looked at anyone heck, you haven’t looked at anything in here except for your drink!” Lisa half-yelled and half whispered, cutting in to Len’s thoughts.

“And don’t you dare say that I’m wrong either. I’m not Len, not in this. Not when it comes to you. I know you’ve been hiding something from me for weeks already and the only reason I didn’t say anything back then was cause I saw how happy you were. You were the happiest I’ve ever seen you and I didn’t want to take that away from you by accidentally saying something.” She continued.

She was about to knock some more sense into her brother when the emcee on stage repeated Len’s name.

“Sorry, is there a Len Wynters here?”

Lisa stood up abruptly, her stool screeching loudly and bringing the entire bars’ attention to her and her brother. “He’s here. Sorry ‘bout that but my brother can get a little shy sometimes.” Lisa exclaimed to the emcee as she grabbed Len’s arm and pulled him up. She placed her hands around him, leaning in as if she was hugging him, and whispered in his ear. “Don’t think you’re out of the woods already big brother. You go up there and sing that song with that cute little boy and after that you and I will be having a long chat about who I need to beat up.” Without waiting for a reply, she drew back and slightly pushed her brother forward.

The crowd began to clap as Len walked to the stage, seemingly to give him confidence. For Len though, the applause just made him get more anxious. Each step he took was punctuated by his heart beat. Let it be said that Len is nothing but calm and collected in a tense situation. Even now, as he’s walking towards what was most likely one of his worst mistakes in life, his heart didn’t speed up - it slowed down, as the weird clenching of his gut worsened.

_Step. Ba –dum. Step. Ba-dum_

He looked around at the rest of the people in the bar, trying to distract his mind from the person on stage. That was when he spotted _her_.

Iris West.

The one person that was everything that he could never be and everything that Barry deserved.

She was sitting in a table for two, towards the back of the bar, right across the room….from Lisa. Fuck.

His sister was right. He really must have been out of it if he didn’t see her and Barry. Plus, going by the amount of empty glasses on their table, they’ve been here for a while already, maybe even as long as himself and Lisa. Shit. He’s never going to go out to drink again, if this is what happens when he gets just a little bit tipsy.  

Len shook his head, no use thinking about this now he decided. He looked back at Iris West. She was wearing an emerald green dress that somehow made her stand out from the rest of the crowd in the low-lit bar. He could see why Barry fell in love with her. She was practically beaming at the stage and undoubtedly, most likely at one very adorable CSI, Bartholomew Henry Allen.

Len eyes slowly followed her gaze, towards the stage, finally working up the courage to look at it. He saw the emcee on stage, a young blond wearing way too many colours for Len’s liking, who was staring at him with a smile, waving him up the stage. However, he wasn’t the only one who was on stage, looking at him. Len shifted his gaze hesitantly to the other person, Barry Allen, the love of his life, and the person that destroyed his heart.

Their eyes locked onto each other, a fleeting emotion ran through Barry’s but before Len could read what it was, Barry looked away and back at his shoes. He did that when he was nervous - Len knew from experience. Their eyes had only met for a second, but in that second, Len’s heart was ripped apart all over again.

He knew. The moment the emcee mentioned the name he knew who it was. He had done the research after all. There was only one Barry Allen in Central City and that was his Barry. Or well, what used to be his Barry, before.

Before everything went sideways, and Barry almost got arrested, almost lost his job –his actual one not the hero thing on the side- and Len almost got kidnapped cause of the Flash. 

They had ended it then. Both knew that too much was at stake here. They knew even before they started this whole thing but somewhere down the line, in between the breakfasts at Len’s and movies at Barry’s, they forgot who they were. They forgot about their lives, their work and their family. They were never Captain Cold and The Flash, they were just Len and Barry.  

But of course, like everything in Len’s life, it didn’t last. After years and years of thinking that he was destined to be forever alone, he was finally starting to have hope. He had started to think that somehow, he could have a happy ending, even if he didn’t have a good beginning. He should have known that life’s never going to be that simple for him.

What started out as a normal day for them, turned out to be their last. The morning before Barry left for the precinct was the last time Len had seen a smile on Barry’s face. The night was just filled with screaming, tears and a mess of feelings all around, until Len finally asked Barry to leave and Barry flashed out of Len’s house.

That was a week ago. A whole week of feeling shitty as fuck and wallowing in self-pity had led him to reluctantly seek Lisa’s company. That’s how they ended up here, in a small karaoke bar late at night - a bar, that apparently The Flash also frequents. God damn it he should have just stayed at home.

As Len reached the stage, and went up, the emcee started talking.

“Ok! So for those of you who have just come in, tonight’s theme is James Bond! So tonight, every random pair that gets picked will have to sing a 007 song. So let’s see what song our friends here, Len and Barry are going to sing…”

The blonde pointed to a screen that was to his right, and Len used that as an excuse to not look at Barry. The screen ran through a random list of 007 songs and finally stopped at one.

For a second time that night, Len really wished he had just stayed at home alone with beer instead of coming here. Life just hated him apparently and wouldn’t give him a day off because the song that he was supposed to sing with Barry was the new theme from Spectre.

“Writing’s on the wall by Sam Smith. Oh wow ok guys, hope you two can sing the high notes of this one. If you can’t well, no one’s going to blame you, we’re all too drunk to notice anyway. Again, the lyrics that are bolded will be sang by one of you and the underlined parts by the other, and if something is both bold and underlined you two have to sing together. You got it?” the guys asked. Len just nodded without taking his eyes off of the screen.

“Great, let’s give it up to Len and Barry!” the emcee said as he walked off stage. Len briefly closed his eyes, cursed his rotten luck one last time and took a deep breath. The music started, as he open his eyes, still only looking at the screen with the lyrics. He opened his mouth to sing the first few lines, when Barry’s voice interrupts him.

\----start of lyrics-------

Len’s mind went blank. He knew Barry could sing but damn, this wasn’t just good singing or a good voice, this was Barry pouring his soul into the song as if he meant every single word. Well with that part about running he probably did mean it. If only he meant the other lyrics as well. Quickly, he shook himself from his thoughts and stated to look at his lyrics on screen.

 

‘ _Damn it’_ Len thinks, as the lyrics hit a little too close to his current emotional state right now. As he continues, to sing, Barry’s voice joins him and harmonises perfectly with his.

****

_‘What are you doing to me kid?’_

Len’s breathing hitches.

His hand grips the microphone even tighter as the next few lyrics pop up on screen. He doesn’t even have time to think before the lyrics and melody falls out of his mouth, filling the entire bar. A part of him feels as if his very heart is being put out in a display cage for everyone to see.

 

Len can feel Barry’s eyes on him.

It should feel unnerving but it doesn’t.

With a sudden burst of courage, he turns around, towards Barry.

His eyes meet Barry’s for the second time that night.

 

He regrets it, when he sees the blank expression on Barry’s face. He wants to turn away and not look at him but before could, Barry stops him again.

 

Something changes in Barry’s expression and pain fills his eyes as he continues to sing.

 

** How do I live? How do I breathe? **

** When you're not here I'm suffocating **

_Oh Scarlet, the things you do to me._

The kid had basically bared his soul to Len, basically said that he was willing to fight for this, for them. He was ready to put everything on the line for Len because he wants this. And damn it, Len wanted it too.

_It’s now or never, Snart._

Still facing Barry, Len closed his eyes.

He poured everything he had, everything he felt, from the moment he started dating Barry to the past week - everything he has _ever_ felt for the speedster - into the song.

****

** I want to feel love, run through my blood **

** Tell me is this where I give it all up? **

****

Taking a deep breath, he reopened his eyes. Barry was still there, right in front of him, still looking at him. His face held the same pained expression although now, his eyes seemed to hold a faint shimmer of hope.  Without looking away, Len continued to pour his heart and soul into the song.

 

** How do I live? How do I breathe? **

** When you're not here I'm suffocating **

** I want to feel love, run through my blood **

** Tell me is this where I give it all up? **

** For you I have to risk it all **

** Cause the writing's on the wall **

 

The music dies down. The patrons in the bar cheer and clap. Len releases a breath he hadn’t realised he’s been holding. He closed his eyes and felt the clenching in his gut reduce a little. He ignores the cheers and the applause. He only hears his heartbeat, and the sounds of Barry’s feet walking away from him.  He watches Barry walk off stage and walk towards the men’s room. He wants to follow, but he knows that this isn’t the place for whatever talk that awaits him and Barry. He walks back to the table where Lisa is. She wants to ask questions, he knows that she has many but he just shakes his head at her. Thankfully she lets it drop this time.

Barry hasn’t come back out yet. Good. Len walks up to the bartender, and grabs a piece of paper. He writes a short note, passes that note and some money to the bartender and tells him to send a drink and the note to Barry’s table before walking back to Lisa. He grabs his jacket from the stool and starts walking towards the door. Lisa just follows.

As he reaches the door, he turns and looks back to Barry and Iris’s table. Barry had just come back and was reading the note. He watches Barry for a whole, before he walks out the door.  He knows Barry will come find him in a few days and he knows that they’ll have a lot of problems to work through. However, he also knows that they’ll work through them together and try their hardest to figure it out.

How is he so sure of that? Because, he meant what he wrote with his whole heart and somehow, he just knows that Barry feels the same way too.

 

_“For you Scarlet, I’m willing to risk everything.” - L_

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, Mel here and this is my first foray into writing fanfics, so pls comment and give feedback! I'll be taking prompts if you want me to write something for either The flash, or MCU (thou be warned that i may not have the time to write that often) and you can find me on tumblr.  
> http://quirky-idealist.tumblr.com/
> 
> If enough people want me to, I may be pressured into writing another chapter, this time in Barry's pov, or even continue this story arc. Also, english is not my first language so i apologize for the mistakes if any


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